This invention relates to utility trailers and recreational e.g. camping trailers. Specifically, this invention relates to multi-functional utility and relatively light-weight camping trailers.
Light weight camping trailers are addressed first. Conventional light-weight camping trailers are typically of a “pop-up” design. Namely, these “pop-up” campers typically have a rigid body shell, a rigid roof-wall, and flexible side panels. The roof-wall is adapted and configured to actuate between a first, lowered/closed, position and a second, raised/opened, position.
The flexible side panels are attached to both the rigid body shell and the rigid roof-wall of the camper. When the roof-wall is raised to the raised/opened position, the flexible side panels are raised to a corresponding raised/opened position, whereby the side panels extend generally upwardly from the sidewalls of the rigid body shell. The portions of the flexible side panels which are adjacent the front and back ends of the “pop-up” camper typically expand outwardly from the rigid body shell, thereby to expand the projected footprint of the camper, and to provide sleeping quarters, for users of the camper, which extend outwardly from the projected footprint of the rigid body/shell.
However, when the roof-wall is in the lowered/closed position, the flexible side panels are stored, e.g. generally folded up, within the rigid body shell and under the roof-wall. Since the roof-wall is rigid, and since it spans across generally the entire upper perimeter of the rigid body shell, a user is unable to e.g. load equipment and/or other articles into the trailer from the “top” of the trailer. Thus, a user must rely on the storage compartments (if any) built into the rigid body shell for storage of such articles. Or, the user must load such articles into the interior portion of the camper through the door of the camper, which can be a relatively difficult task when the equipment and/or other articles to be loaded are large, bulky, and/or otherwise cumbersome. Loading these articles proves even more difficult for a user when the roof-wall of the camper is in the lowered/closed position.
Next, light weight utility trailers are addressed. Typical utility trailers have a platform, e.g. a bottom wall, sometimes known as the trailer bed, and a plurality of sidewalls which extend upwardly from the bottom wall. Since utility trailers typically do not have a top, lid-type structure, e.g. a top wall or cover, a user can load equipment and/or other articles through the upper opening into the open-top box of the utility trailer. This enables a user to load equipment and/or other articles, even those that are large, bulky, and/or otherwise cumbersome, into the trailer by merely lowering or dropping, or e.g. horizontally sliding, the equipment and/or other articles into the trailer. However, utility trailers do not provide any enclosure structure, and are thus not well suited for use as e.g. a camper, where the people expect to be kept dry, and optionally warm.
Accordingly, it is desirable and/or valuable to provide multi-functional utility trailers, e.g. camper-utility trailers, which selectively, as desired by a user, provide camping enclosure features in addition to utility trailer functionality.
It is also desirable and/or valuable to provide camper-utility trailers which can be loaded from the top, and which have storable, optionally flexible, shelves which can be used as sleeping bunks.